Adidas received a number of analyst price upgrades in recent days, including from Goldman Sachs, HSBC, Deutsche Bank, Jefferies and Citi Research, due to signals that the brand’s underlying momentum continued through spring selling and expectations that World Cup sales will come in better than expected. 

Many of the upgrades came ahead of Adidas’ 2Q26 results due on July 30. 

In a June 30th note, HSBC raised its price target to €210 from €180 while maintaining its “Buy” rating on Adidas. 

“A strong brand heat, healthy product pipeline across both performance and lifestyle segments, and solid execution at the time when its arch-rival Nike is struggling with a slower-than-anticipated brand turnaround are helping Adidas deliver a strong financial performance. Moreover, Adidas seems to be capitalizing well on the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup, with football-inspired lifestyle products also gaining traction,” wrote analyst Akshay Gupta in the note. 

Gupta said the World Cup contributed €250 million in sales for Adidas’ first quarter, and management expects a similar level of contribution in Q2 2026. Gupta stated, “As per several high-frequency data points,  Adidas is ahead of the industry average with web traffic up 33 percent y-o-y as per Similarweb (vs Nike -2 percent) for April and May; U.S. foot traffic is up by 4.2 percent y-o-y (vs industry down by 4.8 percent) in May as per Placer.ai. During the first week of the World Cup, U.S. foot traffic in Adidas’ stores surged by 16 percent y-o-y while it declined for Nike.” 

The analyst noted that Adidas is sponsoring 14 teams versus 12 for Nike and 11 for Puma, with Adidas’ roster including four of the Top 10-ranked teams. 

Gupta expects Adidas’ sales on a currency-neutral basis in the second quarter to climb 15 percent, supported by a better-than-initially expected World Cup performance and a “strong underlying brand performance.” He believes Adidas should be in a position to raise its 2026 guidance with the aid of improving top-line trends. Gupta also noted that the recent pullback in oil prices should ease concerns linked to potential margin headwinds to input prices for the second half of this year and next year. Gupta further pointed out that visibility for potential U.S. 

Tariff refunds amounting to €300 million “remain limited at this stage, and if it comes through, it will be a cherry on the cake.” 

In a June 29th note, Deutsche Bank analyst Adam Cochrane raised his price target on Adidas to €210 from €200 while keeping his “Buy” rating intact. Cochrane wrote in a note, “Adidas is set to deliver a good 2Q aided by improving brand heat and the World Cup benefit. Our investment thesis is that 1H 26 would see the peak of Adidas FX sales growth, and as growth slows in 2H26, it will be replaced by stronger gross margin drivers and ongoing opex management.” 

Cochrane increased his target for earnings as he now expects Adidas sales on a currency-neutral basis to advance 16 percent in the second quarter, up from 14 percent previously, with 11 percent representing underlying growth, a 7 percent benefit from the World Cup that will be partially offset by a 1 percent drag from the Middle East war’s fallout. By region on a currency-neutral basis, Deutsche Bank sees Europe up 15 percent, North America up 18 percent, China up 15 percent, Emerging markets flat, Latin America +35 percent and Japan/Korea up 20 percent. 

Cochrane said gross margin pressures remain from foreign exchange and tariffs, and operating expenses will be impacted by the strength of DTC sales in the quarter and World Cup marketing spend. In reiterating his “Buy” rating, Cochrane said, “Across our coverage, Adidas remains one of the most compelling investment cases and despite a tough overall sporting goods backdrop, we believe the sales outperformance can be maintained.” 

In a June 30 note, Goldman Sachs raised its price target on Adidas to €185 from €160 while keeping its “Neutral” rating on the stock. 

In his note upgrading the target price, Richard Edwards cited Hundredx data showing net purchase intent (NPI) rose for Adidas in the month of May while declining for Hoka, Nike brand, On, and Puma.  The report also cited data from Moojing showing Adidas continues to outperform Nike and Puma in China and data from Google Trends showing the gap between Adidas’ and Nike’s global search interest narrowed in recent months through May. 

The report further cited data from Similarweb showing Adidas and On’s unique web visitors continued to grow strongly during the month of May, with Nike and Puma trailing. Similar web data also showed search interest in Adidas’ World Cup ball running above that of previous World Cups. 

Edwards now forecasts adjusted EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) of €620 million for the second quarter, up from his previous estimate of €604 million, as he now sees currency-neutral sales growth of 13.2 percent (up from +10.7 percent) and less of an impact from foreign exchange (-1.7 percent versus -3.2 percent previously). The analyst also slightly raised his gross margin expectations for the quarter due to reduced U.S. tariffs and FX headwinds. 

In a June 30th note, Citi Research raised its price target to €236 from €227 and kept its “Buy” rating. Monique Pollard slightly raised her estimates for the second quarter due in large part to reduced foreign exchange headwinds. 

Pollard wrote of her rating, “Overall, the sporting goods industry has grown at 2x nominal GDP, and we think Adidas is well positioned to benefit from ongoing structural trends such as emerging middle-class consumers, healthier lifestyles, and casualization of the workplace. We also believe Adidas can execute a successful China turnaround strategy, providing growth despite a more lackluster macro environment. We think these trends can deliver medium-term mid- to high-single-digit sales growth and positive EBIT margin leverage despite the uncertainties related to the termination of the profitable Yeezy partnership and other company-specific issues that are being addressed. We still view the sporting goods industry as an attractive oligopoly, with major brands well placed to continue to gain share of the market. Adidas is still viewed as a top brand and part of this oligopoly with Nike, with proven appeal to customers across every major global market.” 

In a note on July 2, RBC Capital Markets analyst Piral Dadhania reiterated his “Buy” rating at a €205. On June 10, Dadhania upgraded its rating on Adidas to “Outperform” and raised its price target to €210 from €170, noting the brand is “delivering DTC-led revenue growth with healthy forward order visibility and consistent execution.” 

In his latest note, Dadhani said he expects 13 percent organic growth from Adidas in the second quarter, supported by strength in soccer due to the World Cup and Arsenal’s recent win of the 2025/26 Premier League title. He sees Adidas delivering gains of 22 percent at DTC and 7 percent at wholesale. 

Among other investment firms, J.P. Morgan, in a July 2 note, resumed coverage of Adidas with a “Buy” rating at a €230 price target. Analyst Licong Wendy Liu cited Google search trends and channel checks showing solid demand for Samba and the Evo SL products. The firm expects growing interest in new lifestyle products to offset the scaling down of Gazelle and Campus lines. 

Jefferies, in a June 29th note, reiterated its “Buy” rating and lifted its price target to €205 from €190. UBS on July 2 reiterated its “Buy” rating on Adidas with a target price of €219. 

Image courtesy Adidas